90 replies to this topic

[Baron]

We I am up and typing with Ubuntu, painless so far. Its found stuff like my wireless mouse and network with out any input from me. Now to find out how every thing works.

Landy, did you install Ubuntu onto a PC that already had windows on it and if so have you ended up with an operating system choice at start-up?

[TonyDevil]

We I am up and typing with Ubuntu, painless so far. Its found stuff like my wireless mouse and network with out any input from me.

that seems to be the major benefit of ubuntu over fedora

[Landy]

Landy, did you install Ubuntu onto a PC that already had windows on it and if so have you ended up with an operating system choice at start-up?

I was just running it off a CD and decided to install it this afternoon, that's when the fun started. I wanted to gain some space on my main C drive so I fired up my trusty PartitionMagic, told it to shrink it original partition and create a new one. I set it in motion and went of for a cuppa. When I go back the re-size had failed and ground to a halt. No problem I will just restart, no such luck. It will not load windows, fast forward 3 hours and lot of swearing and I have finally repaired the boot sector and I wish I hadn't started.

[Baron]

I was just running it off a CD and decided to install it this afternoon, that's when the fun started. I wanted to gain some space on my main C drive so I fired up my trusty PartitionMagic, told it to shrink it original partition and create a new one. I set it in motion and went of for a cuppa. When I go back the re-size had failed and ground to a halt. No problem I will just restart, no such luck. It will not load windows, fast forward 3 hours and lot of swearing and I have finally repaired the boot sector and I wish I hadn't started.

If I had a quid for every time I'd had a similar windows experience

You see the reason for my question now I guess. I think I'll try and install Linux on a separate drive to my windows "C" drive.

[Landy]

I final installed it to my second (data) disk, all went smoothly and yes you do get a choice at start up.
My only problem at present is that I have lost my mouse function a couple of times. I wondered if it was the batteries in my cordless so I tried a standard usb one and that still dropped out after a few mins? So off to the Ubuntu forum to get so inside knowledge.

[Baron]

I final installed it to my second (data) disk, all went smoothly and yes you do get a choice at start up.
My only problem at present is that I have lost my mouse function a couple of times. I wondered if it was the batteries in my cordless so I tried a standard usb one and that still dropped out after a few mins? So off to the Ubuntu forum to get so inside knowledge.

AAAARRRGGGHHH!!!!......"I don't believe it!!"....tinkering with umbuntu running off CD, came to restart with Vista only to find vista won't boot up

Yet ANOTHER Vista install!!!!

I think I'll just try installing Umbuntu alone on this machine and see how I get on with Linux.

If Microsoft made cars indeed........mutter, mumble

[Sparky]

Are all you Vista converts getting any benefits from the new system? I'm still clinging stubbornly to XP, the reason being that my experience of every new version of Windows since 3.1 has been that it's slower, less reliable and more annoying to live with, with the exception of Win2k. In fact, if it wasn't for the fact that some games etc require XP, I'd still be using Win2K - no stupid fancy display themes, wizards or built-in crap, just a straightforward, (relatively) reliable system.

[duibhce Kaelann]

Are all you Vista converts getting any benefits from the new system? I'm still clinging stubbornly to XP, the reason being that my experience of every new version of Windows since 3.1 has been that it's slower, less reliable and more annoying to live with, with the exception of Win2k. In fact, if it wasn't for the fact that some games etc require XP, I'd still be using Win2K - no stupid fancy display themes, wizards or built-in crap, just a straightforward, (relatively) reliable system.

hang on to XP as if your life depended on it! The only reason I'm using Vista on this laptop is that the company sysadmin won' t let me "downgrade" to XP. Even after turning off all the idiotic eye candy and unnecessary services it is still dog slow on my dual core with 2G of RAM...
On the other hand I am slowly succeeding at convincing the guy of the benefits of linux and BSD, he just converted the file server over to linux

[Guinness]

ubuntu ubuntu ubuntu

yup, im typing this from firefox in ubuntu, dropped the bootable DVD in and ..; voila, im in
MS mouse working,logitech keyboard working, connected to router no problem
on the internet

AND IT IS FAST!! cant call this "surfing", this is speedboating! bloody hell. same puter, same DSL, same router
but helluva lot faster.
pictures are loaded before i even get to scroll the window.

havent installed yet, dont wanna destroy the Windows install present on a seperate partition.
Tonydevil will be getting here soon, then its ubuntu time

all thanks for the advice.

[Baron]

Ubuntu installed now but need to disconnect and then reconnect the bluetooth tx/rx device to get my logitech keyboard working after a machine start or reboot. Is this normal?

Oh, and only 195 updates to be downloaded and installed....246.6Mb....bit like Windows so far

Edited by Baron, 28 February 2008 - 07:59 pm.

[Landy]

That's odd I only had 186 updates this morning, took a couple of hours to download. On the up side my mouse is now behaving its self.

[Sparky]

hang on to XP as if your life depended on it! The only reason I'm using Vista on this laptop is that the company sysadmin won' t let me "downgrade" to XP. Even after turning off all the idiotic eye candy and unnecessary services it is still dog slow on my dual core with 2G of RAM...

Yeah, that's what I figured!

[Baron]

Okay, all you umbogo fans. To save me reading pages and pages of Linux info, I have a desktop and laptop running Vista and a server wunning Windows Home Server (WHS), and now another desktop running Ubuntu. How do I make my ubuntu PC visible to my other machines and vice-versa on my network? They are currently all part of the same workgroup except my ubuntu PC.

ll I want is a quiet life...........

[duibhce Kaelann]

I usually do it the other way around and get windows to use the standard NFS to share data with the other machines. But then again all of those are running some form of UNIX.
Since you are using mainly windows it is easiest to use the samba service on the linux to do this. It has been way to long since I did that so I can' t really help you with the details, but a quick google on "ubuntu samba howto" should get you on the way.

[Baron]

I usually do it the other way around and get windows to use the standard NFS to share data with the other machines. But then again all of those are running some form of UNIX.
Since you are using mainly windows it is easiest to use the samba service on the linux to do this. It has been way to long since I did that so I can' t really help you with the details, but a quick google on "ubuntu samba howto" should get you on the way.

Thanks, I'll give it a shot

[Jankers]

Hi there,

I would just like to add that i use Firefox and the PClos distro version of linux.

It comes as a live Cd and i choose it from half a dozen distros on the basis that it recognised all my (older) kit. I wuld certainly recommend you try it.
http://www.pclinuxos...=...f&Itemid=58

I would advise a dual boot system (mine is Linux/WinXP) with the linux on a separate disk if you have the space, together with separate partitions for your System("root"), "Home", and "Swap" partitions. The reason for the separate Home partition is that, Should you need to reinstall linux, your Home directory remains untouched (this is very useful as it contains all the really important info, not just your data files, but also "dot.files" which hold all the settings info for your applications (programs) eg Bookmarks.

I also install the boot menu into the same disk as the Linux distro, leaving the Windows separate on the "C" drive, this way, should (when) i knacker up the Linux through my own ignorance, i always have access to Windows via the Bios boot options.

As others have said, my Windows use has diminished, now it only gets used for games and Cad, even here things like Wine/ Virtual box may be of help.

http://linuxreviews.org/beginner/
http://www.reallylinux.com/

are useful starter sites.

J.

[ChrisG]

Re. the seperate disks and partitions, I use removable hard drive bays. They're a bloody fantastic invention. Means I can easily switch between physical disks without having to diffle with the machine. Mind you I should sort out my hard drive collection, I've got about 1 ranging from 170MB to 500GB.

Anyone got any experience of Knoppix? I keep meaning to have a go with KnoppMyth with a view to building all my old random PC bits in to a machine I can plug in to the telly and watch BBC iplayer and the like.

[Landy]

Just a thought but what do you Linux guys do about virus protection etc?

[duibhce Kaelann]

Anyone got any experience of Knoppix? I keep meaning to have a go with KnoppMyth with a view to building all my old random PC bits in to a machine I can plug in to the telly and watch BBC iplayer and the like.

KnoppMyth is a distribution that is built especially to make the installation and use of MythTV. Myth TV itself is a multimedia center management software mainly aimed at use in PC's hooked up to your telly. You can listen to music, watch slide shows of digital photographs, watch DVD's, record and watch television shows, pause live television shows. And if your PC has an IR receiver you can do all this from your couch using the remote control
It is a great piece of software, but its main focus is on locally kept media and on media that it can capture from antenna, satellite or cable not media that is streamed over the internet (although there are already plugins to browse YouTube and the likes).
There might already be a plugin that helps you get easy access to the beebs iplayer, but you will probably need to do some tinkering to get it working properly.

Just a thought but what do you Linux guys do about virus protection etc?

linux is basically immune to viruses. The only reason why I ever install virus scanners on Linux (or other UNIX-like systems) is to protect windows machines. I run one on my mail server to catch infected emails and make sure they do not get forwarded to any windows machines. It could also make sense to use them on file servers that are used by windows machines in the network, but only if you don't trust or can't control the content of the file server itself.
Otherwise virus scanners are totally unnecessary on Linux.

[Guinness]

Ubuntu installed now but need to disconnect and then reconnect the bluetooth tx/rx device to get my logitech keyboard working after a machine start or reboot. Is this normal?-//-

im also trying to fire up all the features of my logitech G10 keyboard and my MS Intellimouse Explorer.
what ive gathered so far you have to add some code to some file in some sort of "start file".

but im to tired... still recovering from Tony's and Warren's visit...